There really is a Manatee in this photo (hey, our camera doesn't work underwater, okay?). There are only around 2,000 of these slow-moving creatures left in the wild; many are injured in boating accidents, and there have been a number of deaths from so-called "red tide algae." This photo was taken in the Manatee Observation Area of Merritt Island NWR.

© 2003 by Patricia Lowhorn